Born Free 5 Build; 5 years, 5 bikes. A retrospective journey...

That's right narcs! I am getting the jump on all you snitches!

After spending weeks in my garage leading up to BF4. I don't want to go sleepless again. 4 hours sleep for 6 days straight leading up to Saturday made me an energy drink zombie from British bike hell.

Let's take a look back in time... I have a perfect attendance record at Born Free. And I'm very proud of that. Making me a de facto Internet AND Land Chopper Wizard.

BORN FREE 1 Bike 1973 Triumph T-140



BORN FREE 2 Bike 1969 Triumph T-120



BORN FREE 3 Bike 1959 Triumph TR-6 Trophy



BORN FREE 4 Bike 1950 Triumph 6T




Many of you know the legend of this BSA I picked up. Long story short, my 1959 Triumph parked out in front of a bar lured and nice old man into my embrace. He had a non-running bike and was down to deal.

I gave him a generator I got for free and $500 bux. He talked himself down from the $600 I offered him.

Chris and I got it running the next day. But it's not very attractive. And ran weird with Chinaman carbs. So Tony at Classic Cycles juiced me with some great condish used Amal 930s.

Then I hit up my buddy Ryan at the Tiger Shack because I had 2 days before riding to Solvang. I have electronic ignitions put in all my unit bikes because they run boss with them. This bike was too sketchy to trust the previous owner's timing.



In my garage was an old, unused prism tank.



My quick cobbling job for the Solvang trip. Grant sold me the K&Q seat so this thing is Born Free to the max!



Here it sits at my bud's shop. TJ Stiles is a super pro at lining tanks and doing fab work that exceeds my abilities. This tank turns my fuel orange with rust. He's in Huntington Beach if you need a ball rub and tug.



I will be taking this apart for paint. I have some lighting ideas, and other crap I've been thinking about how to make work. I've been meaning to do my super secret sissy bar idea for a while...

I think that may be the most incredible chopper I have ever seen. I almost teared up.

Originally Posted by CRFyou

What's with the copper busts and gold mini bidets?

Originally Posted by MadRiverMoCo

What's with the copper busts and gold mini bidets?

Ha! Billdozer caught that shit, too.

My chick tricked me into marrying her and she wanted me to paint that shit for some wedding decor.

She has no idea that I prefer the company of men. Which is why she never rolls on motorbike trips. Give me a couple of dudes anyday over her telling me how much the seat hurts, or how dirty we're getting.

You need to send her out east...Ace will have her in shape in no time...

Originally Posted by CRFyou

She has no idea that I prefer the company of men.

Marge: "He prefers the company of men."

Homer: "Who doesn't?!?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UI8mBJ6hDxE

Needz sum o' dis.

DAMN, buoy...you're a wizard and a renaissance man. Sweet group of wompy-toothed bikes! I really am impressed, brah-zeer.

Now I need to look up "BIDET".

"I bidet on it, but that fucker buggerized me with a shiller from Toledo. Fuck eBay, again."

Originally Posted by MadRiverMoCo

You need to send her out east...Ace will have her in shape in no time...

She doesn't have the desire nor inclination to embrace the motorbike lifestyle. That's fine with me though. Independence isn't such a bad thing sometimes.

Originally Posted by Zooligan

Marge: "He prefers the company of men."

Homer: "Who doesn't?!?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UI8mBJ6hDxE

That's literally a metaphor for my life.

Originally Posted by NeoDutch

Needz sum o' dis.

If I thought I could afford it, I would. I got a quote from someone on the Journal to do my tiny .22 revolver and he wanted about $1,000. I'm not saying its not worth it, it's just something I wouldn't spend thousands on.

Originally Posted by Taint

DAMN, buoy...you're a wizard and a renaissance man. Sweet group of wompy-toothed bikes! I really am impressed, brah-zeer.

Now I need to look up "BIDET".

"I bidet on it, but that fucker buggerized me with a shiller from Toledo. Fuck eBay, again."

I definitely torture myself with British bikes. I'm like those Catholics that whip themselves, except I don't go down on little boys afterward.

Here's my seat going under the upholsterer's knife.

I wasn't the most stoked on the angle of my frame VS. the seat pan.

So I bent and hammered this thing to a more pleasant angle. I rewelded the Queen back portion to the main pan for the ultimate in Her Royal Majesty's back support.

Although, this seat will probably see 2 dudes more often than a chick. Because I'm friendly like that.

Since this is for Born Free, and nothing is too good for Born Free, I'm going all leather. My seat will smell like Freddie Mercury's ass and I will love it.

Do you still have all of them, or have you sold off a few to fund the next one? The 6T is tittays, and I have high hopes for the beezer. Should be killer.

Originally Posted by BamBam

Do you still have all of them, or have you sold off a few to fund the next one? The 6T is tittays, and I have high hopes for the beezer. Should be killer.

Thanks man!

The first two are gone. I sold those to keep my financial game tight for building other bikes. The rest are staying in my corral though. I don't care how wrecked my savings account is.

A man has to have options when it comes to motorbiking about.

man I'm stoked to see how this new bike comes out

That old BSA motor is a ruler. Nice score!

Are you going to keep the right side Shifter? or convert to the left side with some linkages ........

You know .... You could probably even make a curved shift arm that bring the Knob inward & further back (near the rear of the tank) so it wouldn't be such a long reach for the shifter with your left hand.


That Seat angle was kind of looking like a recliner, good move there. By the way.... The angle of the frame is perfect. The higher "70's" tilt of the frame(higher in the front)..... is truly the Iconic look!
& the increased ground clearance should be a plus
on those hair pin infested, beat to
hell sierra roads.

Originally Posted by Revelator

That old BSA motor is a ruler. Nice score!

Are you going to keep the right side Shifter? or convert to the left side with some linkages ........

I know you don't know me that well, Larry. But I would never shift on the left if the bike wasn't born with that nasty flaw.

Originally Posted by Revelator

You know .... You could probably even make a curved shift arm that bring the Knob inward & further back (near the rear of the tank) so it wouldn't be such a long reach for the shifter with your left hand.

I know it's not efficient, but keeping it on the right with a left hand clutch. I've gotten pretty fast at shifting and back to the throttle. My hand/eye coordination is up there with Forrest Gump.

Originally Posted by Revelator

That Seat angle was kind of looking like a recliner, good move there. By the way.... The angle of the frame is perfect. The higher "70's" tilt of the frame(higher in the front)..... is truly the Iconic look!
& the increased ground clearance should be a plus
on those hair pin infested, beat to
hell sierra roads.

The frame is staying the same. I'm keeping the same fork and wheel. The seat was just a little too laid back for long rides. I'm bringing it up 7-10 degrees. I can't wait to get this thing mountain carving.

Engine compression is a little low so I'm going to take it apart and hopefully everything mics out okay and I can just put some fresh rings in it.

Originally Posted by CRFyou

I know it's not efficient, but keeping it on the right with a left hand clutch. I've gotten pretty fast at shifting and back to the throttle. My hand/eye coordination is up there with Forrest Gump.

Let me know when Flex-o-Lite starts producing the life-size cardboard cutout of you endorsing their ping pong paddles. I gotta add that mamma jamma to my collection...

New upright ish sissy could look good.

Love the first four. \m/

Props for attending each year and building a new cool bike each time.

Breakin' some new chopper ground here. Mother effin' dueling Knight lights!



New attitude on the sissy bar and seat pan. Full leather seat for a first class ride. Vinyl is for the lames riding in coach.





I will be taking this ish apart for paint. My homemade sissy bar needs chrome, as well as the bars since I had to weld mounts to fit them to the fork.

Not feeling this round headlight either. Oil tank is too round for me as well.

2 things:

1. Who painted the green tank of the 2nd bike? I'm nearly sure that it must have some wicked magical powers.

2. Yesterday at the 30th annual "All Harley Drags" here in Central Texas I saw an old hexagonal oil bag with a dished face on a CB, long bike chop and it changed my life. It was like seeing something that you can't "un-see", kinda like watching those Muslim beheading videos online from the middle east. Fuck those guys in the middle east, but that oil bag was delicious. Perhaps that's what the BSA needs.

Oh yeah, and I thought that you were going to build 5 bikes for BF5, CRF?